


You Won't Die, But You Can't Live

by BlueHulu



Category: Five Nights at Freddy's
Genre: Angst, The Afton Family (Five Nights at Freddy's), Unsympathetic William
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-17
Updated: 2020-12-16
Packaged: 2021-03-07 21:53:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 3
Words: 10,406
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26514745
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BlueHulu/pseuds/BlueHulu
Summary: A little angsty Michael Afton story, based loosely on the the real Five Nights at Freddy's series (All rights to the characters' owner, Scott Cawthon)
Comments: 10
Kudos: 58





	1. Chapter 1

Micheal had been just like any other bubbly 4 or 5 year old. He’d run around, play with his new friend, Charlie, and then watched his dad plan the creation of robots with Uncle Henry. Micheal’s favorite out of the bunch being foxy, the pirate themed “animatronic” (as he’d been told they were called). Foxy’s eyepatch and hook were just way too cool.

But while his parents showed him love and care, or at least his mom, he couldn’t help feeling like something was off with the two.

For example, his mom could be expressive and playful while with Mike, but her mood quickly faded when his father entered. On the other hand, it was only around his mother, the Micheal’s father payed attention to Micheal. Not that that bothered Micheal too much.

There was something in his father’s eyes that always unnerved Michael. It was almost like he acted like he was a normal caring father or regular person, but he lacked the true emotions to complete the part. 

Again, that was until his mother was involved. Then his emotions actually seemed genuine.  
But despite the awkward tension of the whole dynamic, Micheal was happy to continue living the life he was living, always ready to jump into his mother’s arms and humor his father with the same “love” that his father gave him in those moments.

His life only seemed to get better as his father and Uncle Henry finally finished setting up a Freddy Fazbear’s Pizza place. Micheal couldn’t even count the number of times he spent at the Emily’s while Charlie gushed about her dad’s desire to build a place where kids could enjoy their childhoods to the fullest. 

Henry always seemed to have a glimmer in his eye, when his goal was brought up. Micheal just couldn’t help admire Charlie’s dad's passion.

But he had no clue why his father wanted to build the machines. It was the only other time, besides with mother, that he looked like he was feeling something, but the glint in his eyes was far from Uncle Henry’s. No, it was much more scary, to the point that Micheal typically avoided being anywhere near his father when he was was downstairs planning or building the animatronics.

After about half a year after the diner had been opened, it had become a huge success. Kids not only throughout the town, but also ones outside of it came to visit the attraction. 

Due to their fathers’ ownership of the place, Charlie and Micheal went there almost everyday. His mom always joked that it was his second home, warning him with a teasing tone not to eat too much pizza. He’d always reply with the same cheeky smile that he wouldn’t and then chase after Charlie who would already be halfway to Freddy’s.

Charlie always managed to get along best with the little children, something that Michael attributed to her being Uncle Henry’s kid. So by the time he’d catch up to her she’d be under a pile of toddlers and even a few kids their age, having a tickling war or play fight, which she always managed to get Michael caught up in.

Not that he ever complained. 

He’d always wanted siblings, his house seeming too empty without another child. Charlie always helped with that, though she rarely visited his home unless her father went, seeming to get even worse vibes from Micheal’s father than he did. 

But even without a brother or sister, Michael could manage to be happy with all of his pizzeria friends and Charlie.

It was kind of funny really, when he reflected on how closed off Charlie had been before. When they had first met, it had been about a year after Uncle Henry and she had moved to their area. Before that, Micheal had only known Henry as his parents’ old friend and had hardly heard about his daughter. 

Even without knowing much about her, he had been excited to meet a potential friend. Henry’s warnings that she may not reciprocate his initial excitement did nothing to stop him from running towards her and immediately introducing himself the second he saw her.

At the start she would merely nod and avoided his eager approaches, but slowly she began to open up until she had practically become an older sister to him. One that he couldn’t imagine living without. 

Eventually they both connected with a bunch of the children that were regulars at Freddy’s and Charlie became the protector of the group.

The days passed with joy and Micheal happily lived his childhood. 

If only everything had stayed so peaceful.

It was his 7th birthday, not that that was when the children started disappearing, but he only noticed it from that day on.

It had been early morning when his mom and him had headed towards the Emily’s, Charlie having convinced him that she had the perfect presents for him and he couldn’t waste a single moment to get them. It was easy for him to wake up considering she rarely hyped up things without reason.

And she definitely hadn’t overhyped these gifts, if anything, she had barely scraped the surface of how meaningful they were. Because after she had brought him to her room, forcing him to keep his eyes shut, she had him open them to a foxy mask along with a yellow plush doll of freddy.

Micheal had probably stared bug eyed for too long, because a flicker of doubt had crossed her face. 

“If you don’t like them, I could get you something els-”

“You’d really give me these?”

Michael’s eyes were already fogging up. Not only had she given him the mask he had been saving up tickets for weeks for, but she had also given her most treasured possession. The plush doll of her favorite animatronic, a doll that she hadn’t let even Micheal near till a month or so ago.

He never knew why she loved the golden animatronic or plush so much. It wasn’t just a superficial attraction, like his with foxy, rather it seemed that she had some sort of connection with the bear. Or at least that was what he had gathered.

Henry had avoided Micheal's questions about it before, but he had a small hunch it might have to do with their past. Maybe with Charlie’s mom? But they only looked hurt when something related to her was brought up, so maybe someone else.

But whatever the reason, the fact that she was willing to give him something so valued made him turn and give her a hug.

“Ar-are you sure?”

She giggled and hugged him back.

“Of course I’d give you them. The bear’s for support, just keep it with you when I’m not around.  
I know you’ll need it considering how easily you can get emotional.”

“Haha, I can’t help it when you give me such great birthday presents.” 

“Silly, just get me something even better on my birthday!”

He just absently nodded, a grin spreading across his face. He couldn’t wait to figure out what to get her. It was only a month before she’d be turning 8, so he’d definitely get something that she’d love just as much as he loved his presents.

“Let’s go, your party’s at 12, but we still need to meet up with Fritz and the others.”

Michael needed no more urging. The kids had agreed to gather to do a mock battle at the Pizzeria with Michael and Fritz acting out the roles of pirates while the rest of the children acted as the traditional animatronic character. Charlie always acted as the ringleader and randomly threw out tasks or situations for the two teams to compete in.

Gently placing his new possessions into his backpack and the bag’s straps over his shoulders, he ran with Charlie to Freddy’s while his mom and Uncle Henry continued an eager conversation.

Micheal didn’t bother trying to figure out what they were talking about, every time he had tried in the past had just got him more confused by their apparent nonsense. His mom and Henry had always had a great relationship, much better than what he saw of his father’s and mom’s relationship. Maybe it was their similar humor and weird thought processes or maybe his Mother and Uncle Henry could just get along with anyone, especially each other.

That would make sense, considering they somehow both managed to get along with his father, someone that Micheal couldn’t see anyone other than those two being able to befriend. 

He’d always secretly wondered what it would be like if Uncle Henry was his dad instead, but he made sure to never mention it aloud. He didn’t know how his father would react if he ever let the thought slip out.

As Micheal followed Charlie out of the house, Charlie bumped into the man himself, Micheal’s father. Micheal nearly shivered at the look his father gave Charlie and then the open door where Henry’s and his mom’s voices and laughs could be heard.

Charlie also seemed shaken, since when her father reached to steady her, she flinched back. He gave her a calculating glance as his hand returned to his side, before shifting his attention to Micheal.

“Heading towards the pizzeria?”

Micheal looked downwards under the focus.

“Yes…”

“Be careful then... you never know how dangerous this town can be.”  
With that, he passed Micheal and went inside, shutting the door. The two children were left frozen behind him.

“Let’s go.”

Their pace had slowed significantly after the encounter.

Mike had grown somewhat accustomed to his father’s behaviour, so he could get over the encounter after a few moments, but he noticed Charlie seemed distracted as they walked to the Pizzeria.

“Hey Michael?”

“Yeah?”

“Has your dad ever made you think… that he would… hurt somebody?”

Michael stopped in his tracks and looked towards his friend incredulously. Had his father frightened her that much?

His father was scary, but he didn’t really think that he would hurt anyone intentionally.

But Micheal couldn’t say that with absolute certainty. There were too many times that he had been alone with his father, when he had seen how apathetic he could really be. So even if he wanted to tell her that he wouldn’t hurt someone, there was that little doubt that held him back.

“He used to come over to our house when we were younger… Sometimes with Aunty Clara, sometimes alone. We didn’t like him much…”

Charlie just continued on, the last sentence coming out quiet as her mind went somewhere else.

“I had a bro-- a friend named Sa-Sammy. Even when we were really young, we both felt... uncomfortable around your dad. Like he’d…”

The sentence lingered in the air, unfinished, but Micheal nodded in understanding. She didn’t need to continue to get the point across.

“Well one night… Sammy and I saw your dad leaving my house. He looked angry, really angry. I don’t know whether it was from a fight with one of my parents or with your mom, but he looked like he was ready to hurt someone. And then… he looked in our direction.”

Charlie’s fist clenched and she looked into Micheal’s eyes.

“Mike, the next day Sammy went missing…

“I’m not saying that your dad was the culprit and I know he’s your dad, but please watch out for  
him... I really don’t want you to disappear too.”

Micheal didn’t respond, he just hugged Charlie as her shoulders began to tremble.

Charlie rarely brought up when she was really young and Micheal had never heard her talk  
about a Sammy before, but he knew to take her warning seriously. If not for her benefit, then because of his own suspicions about his father. 

They slowly made their way to Freddy’s in silence. Micheal was unaccustomed to Charlie getting emotional, since she always acted so strong. So unbreakable. Now that she had shown that she could be fragile too, he didn’t know how to comfort her.

Luckily, when they reached the entrance of the restaurant, a gaggle of kids surrounded them, distracting them from the seriousness of their previous conversation. Soon they were chasing  
after each other, shouting and playing, completely forgetting their previous troubles.

When it turned into 12 o’ clock, the parents all began preparing for the birthday party. Sometime  
after they had eaten pizza and opened presents, Charlie started to look for her father.

“Dad's been working on something for you. Just wait here and I’ll go get him.”

She left Micheal to start finish of his slice of cake as he watched her leave the restaurant, heading  
towards her home. Standing up, he went to where his mom sat with the other parents, crawling  
into her arms.

“Aren’t you getting too old for this?”, she asked with a grin. He just shook his head and hugged  
her.

“So how's your birthday so far?”

“Great! Charlie even said Uncle Henry was working on something for me.”  
“That sounds like it will be fun. I’m sure it will end up being pretty amazing, considering its  
Henry. Oh, and your father wanted me to give this to you.”

Looking up, he saw her holding a card up with the words “Freddy’s Year Long Pass” written on  
the top.

“Woah…”

Micheal was surprised that his father had given him a gift, let alone a year long pass to the  
pizzaria. Uncle Henry and his Father may have been the owners of the restaurant, but they  
rarely gave out the cards, even to their kids. Something to do with the franchise ownership over  
the games and ect. not being their own. 

Before this, he had been given a daily allowance to play any of the pizzeria’s arcade games, but  
now he would be able to play a bunch more. All the other kids would probably be amazed once  
they found out. 

And then a thought popped up in his head.

“Wait, where is father?”

“I think he’s still at Henry’s house. They’ll probably come back together later.”

Micheal had a strange feeling when he heard that, but ignored it. He stayed with his mom a  
while longer before playing another round with the other kids.

Fritz and him were being totally devastated by the other kids, something Charlie’s participation  
usually helped to stop.

When an hour passed, Micheal saw Henry coming from the storage room with a medium sized  
cardboard box with a simple red stick on bow on top and his usual warm smile.

Micheal curiously watched as he approached, the other occupants of the restaurant doing the  
same.

“What is that?”

Henry just set the box onto the table.

“You’ll just have to find out.”

Taking that as permission to open it, Micheal lifted the box flaps and reached inside, but jumped  
back with a yelp as whatever he had touched moved.

Henry just let out a chuckle and took the object out.

If he had been surprised by everything earlier, then he was completely astonished now. His  
father and Uncle Henry had never mentioned making an animatronic outside of work, let alone  
giving one as a gift. And the present looked exactly like a miniature animatronic.

“Wait, you’re really giving me an animatronic?”

“It isn’t a fully functional one like Freddy or Chicka, more of a base model for one your father and I are planning to build in another location for you in the future, though it still has its quirks.”

Despite the correction, Micheal was incredibly grateful for the gift.  
The animatronic didn’t have as cool of a design as Foxy, having a clown nose and party hat with goofy red hair, but it's mischievous smile made Micheal guess that it's true form’s personality would make up for its appearance.

When the miniature animatronic winked and waved a hand, Michael nearly believed that was a real living being.

“Thank you Uncle Henry, I really, really like it.”

“Haha, no problem Mikey, I also have one ready to make for Charlie when her birthday comes around. I can’t wait to see her reaction... By the way, where is she?”

As the man looked around, Micheal suddenly felt his stomach twist.

“You mean she wasn’t with you? She went home a while ago to get you.”

“No… I’ve been in the back for a couple hours now adjusting your gift and repairing one of the older models.”

Now Henry seemed to share the same gut feeling that Micheal was, maybe even worse, as his  
eyebrows furrowed.

“Hey Micheal, could you do me a favor and look for her here, I’m going to go to the house to check if she’s there.”

The worried father didn’t wait for response before jogging out of the front door. Micheal didn’t hesitate before he started asking the other kids and parents whether they had seen her, and soon a little search group had formed to try to find her.

Micheal’s mom’s expression had stiffened when she had first heard of Charlie’s sudden disappearance.

“Micheal, have you seen your father recently?”

“No. Why…?”

His mom had only grimaced and stood up to help find her, but Micheal really didn’t like what the question implied.

Unfortunately, even with a growing group searching for her and several hours passing, there  
was still no trace of Charlie.

About half an hour after Henry had gone home, Micheal’s father arrived at the pizzeria. Even  
after hearing about how his best friend’s child was missing, the man only wore an expression that seemed to mock concern. Micheal noticed that his mother was avoiding even looking at him.

After a while Henry came back with a frantic look that told everyone that he hadn't found her. 

This time when Micheal saw him look at William, he noticed Uncle Henry’s whole manner had  
changed. It was far from the good natured smile he usually greeted Micheal’s father with.

Micheal didn’t think it was anger or hatred yet, but it seemed like the instant he was certain someone-- in this case, Micheal’s father?-- had harmed his daughter, he would make them suffer. But that may have just been Micheal's imagination.

After a tense moment, Henry turned away and continued searching.

While the other kids were only slightly scared about the whole situation, Micheal was completely  
overwhelmed with worry for his best friend and terrified that his father had something to do with it. 

There were just too many things that made his father look guilty. and even worse, if he had been the reason behind Charlie’s disappearance, then what had he done with her?

Beginning to really panic, Micheal went to a more secluded corner and took off his backpack.  
He really wanted to search for Charlie, but he couldn’t stand the idea of finding more reason’s his father could’ve done something to her or deal with the idea that she could be gone forever.

Reaching into his bag, he pulled out the worn stuffed bear that Charlie had given him just that  
morning.

She had said it was meant for support, but Micheal didn’t know if anything could support him at  
the moment. He squeezed the bear and silently prayed that Charlie would somehow show up.  
But after it turned to night and many of the restaurant's occupants left with no success in finding  
her, an increasing sense of hopelessness washed over Micheal, his mother, and Henry. 

Henry refused to give up the search and Micheal’s mother agreed to continue looking after she took Micheal home, something Micheal didn’t agree to after several minutes arguing with his mother.

“Mickey, why don’t you go back with your mother for now. You may be older, but you still need to get sleep. We’ll make sure to wake you up once we find her.”

Micheal could only silently comply with Uncle Henry. The man’s already looked mentally exhausted, and as much as he didn’t want to admit it, Micheal knew he probably couldn’t help much for now.

After they got home, his mother let him change and tucked him into bed before going back to the pizzeria. Micheal felt more than tired enough to sleep, but he couldn’t will himself to actually do it. What if Charlie was still out there, waiting for someone to find her, and he had just given up and decided to peacefully sleep in his bed?

He wasn’t sure what he had to do, but he’d do something.

Rising up, he crept out his room and headed downstairs. He didn’t know what his next steps were until a door caught his attention.

It was the door that led down to the basement, where his dad worked on his latest projects, usually there was only a clutter of blueprints, parts, and tools lying around, but if he went down there now; would he find Charlie?

He didn’t think his father was home, at the very least his car wasn’t. So it should be safe to just check.

Right?

Heart rate speeding up, he made his way to the door. If there was even a small chance that she was down there, he couldn’t risk not checking.

He turned the doorknob, took a deep breath, then headed down the stairs, flicking the lights on as he passed.

The first thing that hit him was the smell. There was rarely ever a smell, except maybe a type of oil for the animatronic parts. But this wasn’t oil. It was the cleaning products his mom usually used when cleaning tough stains from the counter, just that the more steps he went down, the more Micheal seemed to catch traces of another scent. This one adding a sickenly sweet, metallic smell to it.

Starting to feel queasy and wanting to get out quickly, Micheal scanned the room for anything out of the ordinary, but the smell was the only thing that seemed really unusual.

Micheal had always assumed that it was his father was the reason he hated coming down, but even with his father gone, the cold and empty feeling Micheal usually felt when down here somehow still lingered.

Not wanting to risk missing anything, he edged forward to investigate. Scanning all in his view, everything seemed normal, so he approached the cabinets and opened them. Nothing. Except for buckets of screws, some hammers, wrenches, and a couple blades his father kept for cutting netting that was put into the animatronics.

He headed towards the corner where the sink was located, but while the smell was a little stronger he still couldn’t find anything. 

Micheal could sense that something wasn’t right. Like there was an opportunity to help her or at least find out what happened to her, but he lacked the ability to do it. 

Searching and re-searching, Micheal still didn’t discover anything. Finally relenting, he made his way back up the stairs. Glancing back he felt as if something was pulling him, making him want to go back down, but he knew there was nothing left to look at in the basement. She wasn’t there.

Turning his head back, he flicked the lights off and shut the door.

Even after going through the rest of the house and even the backyard, Micheal got nowhere in his search.

Laying back into bed, hugging the golden Freddy plush he had gotten that morning, Micheal couldn’t help but let out a sob this time. It had only been a few hours since Micheal had seen Charlie. Only a few hours before she had gone missing. Yet, even when he knew he could try looking for her tomorrow or the day after, there was almost a certainty in his mind that he wouldn't find her.

That he had seen her for the last time just that afternoon.

That he had lost her.


	2. Chapter 2

Micheal had been up for at least an hour watching the light from his windows creep up the walls, not getting out of bed till the sun had completely risen. As he left his room he spotted his mom passed out on the couch, still wearing her clothes from the day before. He also saw the box that Uncle Henry had given him right before they realized Charlie was missing, on the table.

He didn’t move it. 

Instead, he got a bowl of cereal and ate it, scooping spoon after spoon of the mixture without registering its taste.

He was going to look for her today. 

He still had very little hope that he would find her, but any hope was better than accepting that she was gone.

Placing his bowl in the sink, Micheal looked back at his mom and wondered whether she’d allow him to go to the pizzeria or even Henry’s now. Probably not.

Knowing that he may not be able to investigate later on, Micheal still hesitated to go out to look for Charlie, remembering how Uncle Henry had reacted to her going missing and expecting his mom to act just as frantic if he was gone when she woke up.

But he only had a small chance to get Charlie back if she was still safe and he had to risk possibly upsetting his mom.

Writing a quick note and placing it on his bed so that she would at least know where he went, he left the house. He first planned to visit the pizzeria, since Uncle Henry might be asleep as well.

Despite the bright morning, the neighborhood was completely barren of pedestrians and the atmosphere was anything but happy. Though that could’ve just been him projecting.

But the silence made him nervous. 

He had checked before going and knew that his father was sleeping, or at least in his room, but even with how suspicious his father could be, he may not have been the cause for Charlie’s disappearance. And if that were the case, what if someone else had taken her; what if he were next?

Getting closer to the pizzeria, Micheal began to hear the faint sound of a... lullaby? It sounded like it was coming from a music box in the area, though he was still too far to tell where.

The song only unnerved him more. 

Freddy’s usually didn’t have many people around in the morning, but today it seemed especially vacant.

Cautiously making his way forward, Micheal realized that the music seemed to come from the alleyway right beside the pizzeria. 

It was only due to the daylight that he had enough courage to even edge toward the noise. He had never heard about a crime or suspicious person being around there, but he still prepared to escape if there was any threat.

Peeking into the alley, he didn’t immediately see the source of the sound, but looking towards the right, he spotted something huddled over something else on the ground.

Micheal’s face drained as he thought it was a person, but a closer look showed how strange it appeared. It was long and seemed to be made of-- wait, could it be a new animatronic? 

Inching closer to it, Micheal must’ve made some noise or moved a little too much, since the figure quickly turned to face him, music stopping.

Micheal stared at it, confirming that it must be an animatronic, but it was different from the ones he had seen before. It was mainly themed black with some white stripes, a white mask, red cheeks, a smile, and.... purple tears?

The animatronic only looked at him for a little while before playing the music again and returning its gaze back to something beside it. 

Curious and seeing that it neither saw him as a threat nor appeared to be one, Micheal approached to look at what it was focused on.

That’s when everything started getting fuzzy.

It was kind of strange.

Micheal had only ever seen a “crime scene” once, in a horror movie a couple years before with Charlie. 

The start of the movie hadn’t had anything frightening, so they were completely caught off guard when one of the main characters got hit over the head and dragged away. By the time Henry ran it to see why Micheal was crying hysterically and turned off the movie, the scene had been replaced with someone cleaning the large amounts of blood from the ground and hiding all the awful evidence of the crime.

Charlie's face had shown no evident reaction, but the way that she squeezed Micheal after showed it had affected her as well. Now that he looked back on it, it was probably her coping mechanism, closing herself off and acting as if her fears weren’t there.

Neither had spoken about the scene afterwards. Henry must have explained to his mom what had happened, since she never asked why he would have nightmares afterwards, just comforted him while he calmed down and managed to go back to sleep.

But why was he reminded of that now?

Everything was a blur of black and white and a brownish red.

Had he run back home and wake his mom? He couldn’t remember. 

All that he could remember happening next was seeing his mom and Uncle Henry standing in the alleyway, looking at the animatronic and whatever was beside it. His mom had been crying and hugging Henry as he stood, eyes empty.

Then police. Flashing lights. An officer talking to him.

None of it seemed to register with him, but he somehow knew something with absolute certainty. Charlie was gone.

He hadn't found her in time. She couldn't be saved.

She was dead.

After the quick interrogation from a soft spoken police officer and Micheal still not being able to fully comprehend what he had seen, Michael's mom was told she could take him home.

They might have told her that they'd need him to recount it another day, but his mind was too hazy for him to be certain.

It seemed that the day was escaping him. His mom had tried to comfort him, though his lack of response started to scare her.

It wasn't until night that she got too exhausted from everything that she had to sleep, but she still made sure to hold him as a way of showing she was still there for him.

They had been laying on his bed for several hours. Michael could barely stay awake, but going to sleep seemed even more unlikely. 

So much had happened in the past 2 days, yet his brain was processing it at a snail's pace.

But even in his shocked state, the moment Michael saw a pair of eyes appear in the doorway, ones that were typically absent of emotion, his mind seemed to temporarily sharpen.

As his father looked into him, something like conflict appearing on his face. His hand, which had been pushing the door open, faltered.

As time dragged on, his father glanced from Michael to his mom, then finally back to Micheal before turning.

"My condolences… Michael."

And his father walked away, just like that.

Whether it had been actual sympathy or maybe some form of guilt, he would never know. 

***

As weeks passed, Micheal gradually began to function again. His mom had spent a majority of her time trying to help him recover, visiting Henry, and avoiding her husband. 

He hadn't been able to give the police many answers and they didn't really push him after checking whether he had seen anything unusual afterwards.

Micheal never went with mom to Henry’s house. There was something that kept him from going there. Maybe it was the reminders that would surely be inside. Maybe it was not wanting to see how Henry was coping.

Micheal’s father, despite his mom’s avoidance, had been especially doting whenever he was around. His new charisma made Michael begin to doubt some of his previous thoughts about his father. Micheal didn't truly know who had been involved with the disappearance, so at most he could only justify feeling uncomfortable around him, anyways. 

At least that was what he told himself.

Michael's mom also appeared to have difficulty trying to ignore his father, and Micheal was starting to think she would be won over by him.

He didn't know how he felt about that.

Really, he didn't know how he felt about anything in general. 

He hadn't really left the house since that day, though he heard bits and pieces of information about Freddy's from his father. 

It had shut down for a day before going back to business, but apparently some security guards were hired, his father even mentioned a makeshift security room had been built for them.  
Yet Michael didn't react to the news other than a moderate amount of surprise. It wasn't like the new additions could do anything now.

He didn't go outside much anymore. His mom had started visiting Henry often, and his father was down in his work room, possibly making more animatronics, while Micheal stayed in his room.

Originally, he had laid alone on his bed all day, staring at the gold plushie or sometimes wearing the mask. He didn't feel energetic anymore, so laying down for hours was easy for him.

But one day the sound of something shifting in his room startled him from his usual daze. Looking for its source, he discovered that it seemed to originate from the present Henry had given him, so long ago.

Someone had moved the box to his room a while back, but he hadn’t messed with at all. Now looking at the animatronic's sad attempts to get out of the box, Micheal felt slightly guilty.

Watching it try to claw at the cardboard, he finally decided to get its attention.

"Er... hi?"

The animatronic looked up in surprise as it analyzed Michael's face. It then started to smile up at him and wave.

It was kind of weird for Michael. It had felt like a long time since he had seen such a genuine looking smile. Even if this one wasn’t from an actual person, it made him feel a little twinge of warmth.

“Want me to help you out?”

After it nodded, its smile growing, he tried lifting it up by its armpits. The miniature animatronic was about half Micheals size, but relatively heavy, so he struggled to get it out. In the end, he had to tip the box over before it was finally able to get out.

As Micheal helped it from the position it had spilled into after falling out of the container, it began looking around his room curiously, and then at him.

The way the animatronic expressed itself like a human shocked Micheal. It was different from the animatronics at Freddy’s, who although had different expressions and mannerisms, all appeared much more mechanical than this one.

Though, Henry had explained before that the animatronics at the pizzeria had been built several years ago --only taking so long to open the place due to funding and some legal issues-- so maybe they’d improved in their animatronic building skills?

Despite its interest in the room, the animatronic stayed within the same spot, only turning around and staring.

“You can explore if you’d like.”

Micheal tried to coax it, but it seemed to be stuck in its place. 

Had Henry made it unable to talk or move around? He was curious, but couldn’t really ask him at this point.

Micheal tried to pull it towards him, but it only took a half step before locking into place. No matter how hard he pulled, Micheal couldn't get it to go much farther.

“Sorry, I guess I’ll just have to keep you there.”

The animatronic just shrugged with indifference, wearing the same grin.

Despite the animatronics lack of care for its circumstances, Micheal still felt a need to help it somehow, but he could only think of talking, something somewhat difficult if the other person couldn’t talk.

…

Wait…

Thinking back on it, Micheal was pretty sure that he had gotten a present that might help with that.

“Do you know how to read and write?”

The animatronic gave an exaggerated thinking face before nodding vigorously.

Micheal went to the pile of presents that had been left untouched in the corner of his room, searching for something. After a little while, he finally came across what he wanted, a handheld monitor tool Susie had gotten him with his name taped on it. It was meant to teach spelling and writing through typing words and with school beginning soon, she had thought that he would find it useful. 

Turns out, it would be useful for a whole other reason. 

Giving the animatronic the “Hand Unit”, as it was called, he briefly explained how to use it, waiting as the animatronic tested the keypad.

“Blurygvh- Pizza. Fun. Bongos. Ha ha ha.”

What the-

Confused was a mild way of describing what Micheal felt. The animatronic seemed to understand when Mike spoke and knew some words, but was it able to form comprehensible sentences?

Observing his reaction, it seemed as close to laughter as Micheal could imagine an animatronic being without laughing. Could it just be messing with him?

He gave it a suspicious look.

“Ha Ha Ha.”

Henry really knew what type of animatronic to get Micheal, didn’t he… 

“I guess we haven’t officially introduced ourselves. My name is Micheal, what is your name?”

It only shrugged, interested more in the surrounding objects than the introduction.

“What’s this?”

It was pointing toward a picture on the wall.

“Oh, that’s-- that’s just an old photo.”

“...”

The fact that the keyboard narrated “Dot, dot, dot” had Micheal facepalming.

“This?”

“A Foxy lamp.”

It raised an eyebrow at him, before it asked about something else. He laughed as it seemed to silently judge him for liking the other animatronic.

The process went on for a while, the animatronic seemed to know basic items, like a bed, a dresser, a door, but anything else it would question. Micheal wasn’t annoyed, since it wasn’t pestering him for answers, just figuring out everything while reacting in comical manners. It was actually kind of nice to have a bit of a distraction and lighthearted company.

Well, until it asked about the golden plush doll.

Noticing Micheal’s instant silence after its inquiry, it had quit its interrogation, deciding to play with its hat. Though, it did peek up at the boy then, once again, and analyzed the room again before switching back to the hat. 

It had come to a few conclusions.

***

A few days went by and Micheal began to feel a sort of friendship form between him and the animatronic. 

Its sense of humor was definitely unusual, but he enjoyed its company a lot more than when he had been alone. And despite its goofy demeanor it seemed to be able to know what to ask and talk about and what to avoid.

Though, it still refused to give a name and wouldn’t let him give it a nickname. Not that he took it to heart, since it made it more of a game than just something it didn’t want to tell him.

Micheal did feel bad that it was forced to remain in the same spot all day, every day. He tried to find things to entertain it, bringing card and board games, books, and paper and markers, which it was content with.

As the pair drew a few designs of animatronics, Micheal’s mom called him down for dinner. He wasn't particularly hungry these days, but he and his mom had been keeping a pattern of eating together and he didn't plan to add to her stress by not eating either.

There was a plate with a grilled cheese sandwich and a bowl of tomato soup out for him, a meal they had both enjoyed a lot in the past, but it seemed to lose its charm after his birthday. The soup in particular made his stomach churn, but maybe he was just overthinking. 

As Micheal sat and started to nibble at the sandwich, he watched as his mom sat deep in thought while stirring the soup around.

"Micheal, have you ever wondered why I married your father?"

Well.

That was a loaded question… one he really didn't know whether he should answer truthfully or not. Luckily, his mom didn't expect a reply and continued on.

"He was such a sweet boy when we were younger… Of course there were some issues, but with everything happening at home, Henry might have been the only reason he managed to get through it all.

"I hadn't met them till middle school, but despite the difference in how long we knew each other, we all got along as if we had known each other for years. 

"Eventually, we neared the end of high school. Henry had a huge crush on a girl since freshman year, and Will and I constantly teased him about it.”

Her eyes glittered as she reflected on the past, even letting a small smile slip onto her face, but Micheal couldn’t help but feel like life had thrown him yet another curveball. He had never heard his mother talk so affectionately about his father, their relationship had always seemed more one sided and even after his father’s recent increase in charm , his mother still kept a distance from him.

Had it all been a front?

“When Henry finally got the nerve to ask the girl out and they started dating, Will and I began spending more time alone together, slowly turning into more than friends.

Micheal just kept his eyes on the spoon as she swirled it around the bowl, keeping his focus away from her lost look.

“I used to dance back then, and he’d attend every rehearsal and recital. Then we’d go out to eat and sometimes spent the night out, just wandering around.

“He was such a great guy… I thought he was the perfect man. 

...

"I had been so happy when we had our wedding and then I learned I’d have you; I was married to one of my best friends and we were having a child together. It all seemed so great.”

She left the conversation off there, fiddling with the soup a little longer, then just putting a cover over the food for later and waited as Micheal worked on his. 

How could he feel comfortable continuing to eat after all of that?

When he had eaten enough of his dinner and his mom put everything away, the pair went to the living room to watch some soap operas on the television.

Neither of them paid much attention to the actual show.

Funnily enough though, the weirdest part of the day came when he and his mom were dozing off on the couch. 

A figure appeared and turned off the TV. It quietly crept toward them and gently lifted Micheal up, before also coaxing his mother onto its back. As it stood up, it let out a soft grunt from the weight of the two, but still headed towards their bedrooms.

It carried them to Micheal’s room and toward his bed, laying him down and tucking him in. When Michael recognized who it was, he could briefly understand what his mom had meant earlier. What if his father wasn’t bad?

Heh.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the late release, I'm posting what I'm generally happy with, but I may edit the chapter later on. The characters individual reactions to some things may seem strange for now, but they'll hopefully make sense as the story goes on. Otherwise, thank you for reading! ^^


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Bit of warning, not super detailed descriptions of graphic scenes (just a bit of a flashback with some mention of blood and panicking) in the middle of the chapter, feel free to comment about issues/ additional warnings that may be needed

Weeks passed and soon school started. Micheal’s mom had been hesitant to let him go, but he seemed to be recovering, so she had thought it would be alright. She had even hoped that he would start talking to other children again. That maybe it would help to fix him and some of the mess that their life was slowly becoming. 

But it didn’t help.

At this point, he only opened up around the animatronic in his room, even revealing stories of when he played games back at Freddy’s. Not everything, but more than he would share with his mom, who had become increasingly distracted as the days passed.

But he noticed he was doing the same. He had been having weird dreams, nothing he could make out clearly, just unpleasant feelings and blurs that caused him to lose a few hours of sleep. The new exhaustion was just another addition to his increasing number of problems.

Then there was the difficulty concentrating and the isolation. Those didn’t really help him at school.

In class, he was no longer the chatterbox that befriended everyone, now was just the strange, quiet kid who watched as the others played. After several attempts, his teacher and classmates effort’s to involve him had decreased significantly.

He rarely saw the younger children he used to play with at the pizzeria, since they were in lower grades, but even when he did he couldn’t really bring himself to go to them. They reminded him too much of before, and despite them not bringing it up when they did see him, the chance that they might ask about her just encouraged his avoidance. 

And then came his father, who was getting more involved at home. 

Although his father had cared for his mom before, he was usually shut down in the basement or out with Henry, working on something animatronic related, but now he peacefully lounged at home and doted on her. 

Micheal felt too uncomfortable lingering long when they were together, so he spent the majority of his time in his room. He suspected that his father had caught him talking to the animatronic, making him feel guilty or like he was doing something wrong for some reason, but he tried to ignore it, just like he tried to ignore everything else.

***

“Hey...”

The animatronic paused its coloring and looked at Micheal curiously.

“Who are you drawing?”

The animatronic had been producing pictures of animatronics Micheal didn’t recognize. Some had some similarities to the ones he knew, but he didn't know any of them.

The miniature clown looked down at the HandUnit, metal fingers lingering over the keys, but then just shook its head.

"You don't know them?"

Shrug.

…

"I always assumed that they were your old friends…"

Another shrug.

Micheal had been told several times by his father that animatronics weren't like humans. They were just metal bodies programs created to mimic humans.

So why did this one always make him doubt that?

It shouldn't be possibly for such a look of loneliness to be a mere imitation. In all honesty, his father seemed less human than this animatronic.

Micheal knew that despite all the stuff that was happening to him, at least he wasn't stuck, alone and with only one person it could interact with. Micheal usually just talked about himself, forcing it to listen to his life, while it suffered, trapped in the same spot relying on whatever Micheal gave it or told it to entertain itself. Wasn’t he better off?  
.  
A suffocating feeling was building up in his chest

"Well, if they aren't your friends… would you like to be friends with me?"

And then there was silence.

Micheal had told the animatronic what friendship was before, even describing how he and his old friends had drawn their favorite animatronics and played together, but he had never called the other a friend. It was a risk. It almost felt like, by giving the title away, he just had another thing that could be taken away. 

But this animatronic had become so important and helped him in its own way, so it deserved that much.

Yet the pause was really unnerving him. Despite how much he had begun to depend on the robotic clown, what if it hadn’t wanted any of it? Micheal had run out of people he could trust, so what if he lost one of the only ones he did?

Trying to focus on the other’s expression, Micheal kept some of the panic down. Looking back, the animatronic’s smile grew bigger than he had ever seen it become, making exaggerated and excited gestures. 

After vigorous nodding, it finally thought to type its answer.

“Yes!”

The enthusiasm made him laugh, a giggle turning into uncontrollable laughter as relief sunk in. The two happily went back to colouring, even creating drawings of each other, and while Micheal’s couldn’t come close to the other’s quality, it accepted the picture eagerly.

Maybe the risk paid off.

***

While his situation hadn’t improved much, still lacking sleep and not interacting with the other kids at school, he was able to get through the day knowing he had some escape. 

One day during recess, while he sat staring at nothing in particular, Gabriel approached him. Seeing the younger kid, Micheal had felt his stomach churn. Too many memories of them playing in the pizzeria. Too many thoughts rushing past in his head.

“Mikey?”

The boy was more timid than usual, not that he had ever been particularly outgoing, but he was never this reserved.

But what really caught Micheal off guard was the nickname, he hadn’t heard it since his birthday. 

Since she-

“Hey Gabe.”

Man, the kid looked bad. Almost like he had recently been crying. Micheal may have only had a few years over him, but Gabriel had always seemed even younger than his actual age, causing the group, especially the girls to become rather protective of him. Micheal felt the same.  
.  
“You… doing okay?”

“Yeah, it's just that- just that Suzie’s-”

Gabriel’s already red face became redder as he had difficulty continuing.

“He-her doggy go-got hi-hi-hit.”

The boy was already bawling by the end of the sentence, and Micheal didn’t even notice he had already stood up to comfort him. He had enough experience to know how to comfort him a little.

“Hey- Shh~ It’s okay.”

Micheal kept his voice even and calm, but he couldn’t really think properly. Suzie’s dog had been hit? By a person or a car? Was it okay?

Was Suzie alright?

After several minutes passed, the younger kid managed to explain that Suzie had been playing around with her new puppy, when it got loose and ran into the middle of the street. When she ran over to get it back, it got hit by a car. She hadn’t been at school for a few days, but when she did come back she managed to tell the other kids before she had ended up crying, leading to Gabriel (and possibly some of the others) to follow suit. Eventually Gabriel ran off to find Micheal. Or maybe he hadn’t been searching for him in particular, but someone else...

Whatever the case, Micheal felt obligated to check on the others. Even if he felt uncomfortable being around them, if they were going through something, he couldn’t just leave them to handle it on their own.

So, after settling Gabriel down a little more, Micheal had the boy lead him to the others.

The group was huddled around a tree farther away from the playground, so no yard aids had noticed their distress yet. Coming closer, he could see Suzie sitting against the tree trunk, knees pulled against her face as she cried. Jeremy seemed to try to coax her out, but to no avail, Fritz stood to the side, hesitating, while Cassidy crouched, stabbing at the dirt with a stick.

Fritz and Cassidy looked up at their approach, but Micheal didn’t say anything, just passed by and knelt on the ground beside Suzie. Jeremy gave him a shocked look, but scooted back a little as Micheal gave him a nod.

“Hi Suzie.”

She didn’t look up, but there was some stirring as she heard his voice. 

“I… heard about what happened.

“I know you really loved him."

She looked up at him with a red face covered in tears, many more already being formed. 

"I m-miss him."

"I know, and I know it hurts… that you-"

You won't see them again.

It hurts that you saw them.

There.

And it hurts, because they were gone. 

Forever.

"Don't worry, it'll be alright. It hurts now, but it'll get better."

Micheal heard Cassidy scoff at that, but he focused on trying to help Suzie.

After the sniffles stopped, though more from exhaustion than actually feeling better, Micheal helped her up.

"Why don't we get you guys cleaned up, okay?"

While Suzie and Gabriel looked the worst off, it was apparent that everyone needed to wash up and blow their noses. 

Micheal couldn't begin to imagine what others thought as he lead the group of blotchy faced kids over to the restrooms. Luckily, no one interrupted their walk, just gave a few stares before going back to playing. 

Micheal had the kids go to their assigned restrooms, Cassidy and Suzie to the girl's and Fritz, Jeremy, and Gabriel to the boy's, while he went to the water fountain nearby.

The water didn't really help. Through all his efforts to sooth the younger children, he had ended up digging up something he really didn’t want to. 

A memory, of an almost unrecognizable pale face, eyes staring at the sky. She wasn’t blinking and she didn’t look to be seeing anything. 

He held back the urge to hurl as he saw the majority of the kids exit the bathroom, Fritz talking to Gabriel, Jeremy going to Suzie, and a furious Cassidy headed straight toward him, dragging him a distance away from the others.

“They deserve to be thrown in prison or-or hit themselves! They killed an innocent little puppy and right in front of her-

“Did you know they didn’t even stop? That they didn’t slow down?

“She spent 3 days all by herself after watching it. She could barely get through class today.”

The girl spoke in a lowered voice, but it didn’t take away from the frustration and fury in her voice. She could be scary when she was mad, but this was more emotional than Micheal had ever seen her get.

Cassidy was older than the other kids, nearly Micheal’s age, but she had entered school late due to issues at home, leading her to be stuck in a lower grade. She had been rough to get along with before, having a temper whenever someone got near her, but Charlie had somehow befriended her and managed to get her involved with their group.

Her maturity level seemed older than even Micheal’s, but she still struggled to hold in her anger, especially when it concerned the younger kids, who she treated like family.

“Cass-”

“They hurt her and her puppy!”

“Cass, I know it’s tough, but you need to calm down-”

He knew that she was just releasing all the built up stress she hadn’t been able to get rid of, but it was still difficult to handle her aggression.

“Mikey, aren’t you angry that someone could just do this and get away with it?”

“I am, but-”

“How is this anger?”

“Not now, Susie just-”

“So you’re just going to do nothing again, like with Charlie’s murderer!?”

…

Charlie’s murderer

...

Charlie’s 

…

Murder

…

Breaking from her grip, he ran to the restroom, not even bothering to close the stall as he crashed to the toilet and threw up. 

He was remembering that day, when he had looked for Charlie. What he had seen behind that new animatronic.

He had found her, but she hadn’t been alive.

She had been left in that cold, dark alleyway. Lying in a pool of-

Micheal heard the kids enter, one of them even beginning to cry again, but he didn’t bother looking up. He just gagged, a burning sensation left in his throat. 

He heard them talking to him, but just concentrated on controlling his breathing and thoughts. But he could barely handle one, let alone the other.

Unsteadily, Michael stood up, flushing the toilet as he did. He pushed through the group of children shaking off any attempts to help or hold him.

"Gotta go"

He exited the restroom, not really seeing anything, just choosing a random direction and running away. 

He hadn't gotten too far before he was back to gasping for air, but at the very least he had gotten away from the tight stall and all noise. 

Collapsing in an out of the way corner at the end of a set of classrooms, he curled into himself and tried to forget the memory. 

He'd been able to before, so why couldn't he now?

Had he really forgotten or had he been pretending? He had known she was gone, so hadn't he remembered all long?

That she had‐ that she had been killed 

and tossed into an alleyway 

and left with red stained clothes and…

He had to breathe and had to calm down. 

But even after the bell had rung and several minutes passed, he stayed in the same spot, unable to move. It was only after hearing the kids in the classroom he was next to preparing to go to recess, that he managed to bring himself back to as reality. 

He pushed himself, staggering a little as he still tried to recover, and then made his way to his own class.

When he entered, several eyes bore into him, examining his rough appearance. His teacher even asked whether he needed to go the nurse, but he shook his head and sat down, keeping his eyes facing the ground.

They weren't going to be released for another long hour, so Micheal lowered his head onto the desk and shut his eyes.

He could still see it all, the animatronic, the blood, Henry's face after he saw her.

While the teacher gave a small lesson on something, he fought to get through the remaining class time, though the teacher checking up on him occasionally didn't help anything, as he was forced to divert some attention and act like he was well enough to stay in class.

Micheal didn't want to risk going home early, having one of his parents pick him up and asking what was wrong. He really didn't want to reveal any of it. Not yet.

So he just had to survive school, get home, and get to his room.

Easier said than done. By the end of class he was nearly too tired to go home, having to force himself up once again in order to make it to the bus.

The ride went by in a blur and he slipped past the living room, where his mom sat watching her soap operas, and headed straight toward his room.

Micheal saw the animatronic perk up when he entered, but he just continued forward and face planted onto his bed. He was so tired. He already hadn't been getting as much sleep, and everything that happened that day had mentally and physically drained him.

It didn't take long before he fell asleep, but instead of the usual blurry and uncertain dreams he'd been having, these were distinct images. 

He woke up breathing heavily and in a cold sweat. He dug the heels of his hands into eyes trying to make the images go away, but it didn't help.

". . ."

Micheal didn't need to look up to know that the animatronic was watching him carefully. He slightly shook his head.

He heard the clattering and a click, before the sound of… bongos played?

He lifted his head toward the animatronic. 

"Music can be therapeutic and may help with unwanted stress."

It pointed at the back of a CD cover to show its reference and rather than wearing its usual grin, the animatronic had a small smile that looked more uncertain and concerned. 

Had it been anyone else, Michael might've stayed where he was and tried to ignore them, but it was the one thing that had continued to stay with him throughout the whole ordeal.

He slowly slid off the bed and sat next to his friend, making sure to turn the music off in the process.

"Not my type of relaxing music."

He gave a flicker of a smile to show his appreciation for its gesture.

It solemnly nodded and went deep into thought. Without warning, it suddenly lit up and grabbed one of the books Michael had brought it, a cookbook his mom used to use.

It flipped through the pages and triumphantly pointed at a picture before typing on the HandUnit.

"To help a grumpy teen wake up happy in the morning, here is a recipe for Eggs Benedict."

Micheal observed his friend, mind blank as he tried to process what it had said.

“Thanks… but I don’t think that food will really help me right now.”

It nodded a bit more somberly and continued to flip through the pages, pausing as it looked up at him seriously.

“You wanted my name.”

Micheal’s head snapped up and his eyes widened in surprise.

Wait. Was it really going to tell him?

Micheal hadn’t pushed it to tell him its name, sometimes wondering if it even had one, but he’d been incredibly curious about what it could be. Even after everything that had happened that day, Micheal was temporarily distracted from it all as he waited for his friend to continue.

“I’ve decided on one.”

So it really hadn’t had a name before…

It picked up the book, turned to a page, then looked at him. 

“It’s-”

It turned the book to face him and set its finger beside the title of the page.

“Exotic Butters.”

Micheal’s mouth hung open as he turned from the page to the animatronic, trying to decipher whether it was serious or not.

“You- You want your name to be Exotic Butters?”

It nodded without smiling and Micheal mentally tried to cope with the situation.  
“Do… you like it?” 

Micheal would laugh if his friend would crack a smile, but it still just waited earnestly for his reply. He finally managed to get out a response.

“You know what? Exotic Butters is a great name, I almost wish it were mine.”

It finally grinned back at him, proudly nodding, before seeming to think about something.

“I could call you something.”

Micheal felt a sudden ominous feeling as ‘Exotic Butters’ nodded to itself.

It flipped back to where it had been before and Micheal already knew where this was going.

“I don’t know- Butters- as boring as my name is, I-”

“Eggs Benedict.”

Oh no.

Micheal was preparing to find some way to stop the new nickname, but his mom called him down for dinner, so he could only helplessly leave as ‘Exotic Butters’ happily waved at him.

“Bye Eggs!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the late post, I'll try to get the next chapter out sooner. I tried to add some background to the characters and their relationship with Micheal before the upcoming events (there's likely going to be a bit more drama coming up). 
> 
> Otherwise, thanks for reading =]

**Author's Note:**

> Hello, as mentioned before, this is somewhat loosely based off the Five Nights at Freddy's games and fan theories, so please forgive inconsistencies that may occur (such as Freddy's pizzeria being opened so soon, the absence of the diner, and ect.). Otherwise, thank you for reading!


End file.
